Recently, the voice of my writing has shifted. To put it plainly, become a little… sexier. So – for research purposes only, of course! – I ran a thread on my Facebook page, asking female friends to say what they found most attractive about men, physically.

I was amazed to discover an overwhelming majority thought that…

One friend posted a photo of a gym-bunny, telling me to look at the arms. Um. No. My gaze first of all landed on the chest and shoulders! Never once, whilst admiring men in my real life or the celebrity world, have I ever thought ooh nice forearms. So I asked for an explanation – apparently it is to do with strength and hugs. Smooth skin. Just a smattering of hair. Sleeves rolled up. Hmm. Okay. Fair enough.

Other popular features? Eyes and a nice smile. And to my surprise shoulder-length hair and tattoos came up several times, both of those adding an element of danger. People liked large nose and thinking about it, well yes, a small nose does nothing for me when it comes to the opposite sex. The biggest surprise was that NOT ONE SINGLE WOMAN, young or older – and the post received many comments – mentioned a six-pack or V muscle. I hope that’s a relief to some less energetic men reading this!

Hands also featured prominently – large and long-fingered. Personally, for me, no, I find the idea of that a little bit scary! Man buns and stubble got a small shout-out… so I guess the refreshing conclusion is that – apart from the common forearm factor – we are all turned on by different things, not the media-driven, stereotyped image of male perfection.

My female friends also deemed smell and a deep voice important. Apparently even sweat is appealing! And a good sense of humour came up time and time again. Indeed my personal top feature is intelligent, crinkly eyes that always seem to laugh at me.

So guys, if you are feeling the pressure to look a certain way, chill out. Us women love you all for an array of individual reasons. It’s the whole package that counts and not a lot to do with how many muscles show through your abdomen.